I confess I’m short of eloquence this morning, in part because I still have only had brief increments of a few minutes in which I have been able to stop crying, for all the best reasons. I’m still a bit frozen still by a very unexpected and long exhale of breath I have effectively been holding for eight freaking years. I’m still trying to parse actually feeling proud of the nation I live in: I personally rarely HAVE ever felt that pride. And I can’t fib: while I think that absolutely, positively, “Yes we can” is an incredibly powerful statement, and I am loving hearing it be so meaningful to so many, “Oh no you didn’t!” is feeling mighty fine on the tongue this morning, too.
Nelson Mandela is better at this stuff than most of us, and I’m finding that what he had to say is resonating with me today more than nearly any other commentary I’ve heard.
“We join people in your country and around the world in congratulating you on becoming the President-Elect of the United States. Your victory has demonstrated that no person anywhere in the world should not dare to dream of wanting to change the world for a better place.
We note and applaud your commitment to supporting the cause of peace and security around the world. We trust that you will also make it the mission of your Presidency to combat the scourge of poverty and disease everywhere.
We wish you strength and fortitude in the challenging days and years that lie ahead. We are sure you will ultimately achieve your dream making the United States of America a full partner in a community of nations committed to peace and prosperity for all.”
November 5th, 2008 at 12:08 pm
*joyful hugs*
I remember reading this very journal after the 2000 election, I remember the shock and the rightful bitterness at a stolen election, and how none of us could believe that Bush, of all people, was going to be President.
Of course Obama isn’t perfect, but as he himself has said, it isn’t really about him– it’s about all the people who decided to vote for hope instead of fear, and it’s about all the people who will grow up without there ever being a question of whether or not a black person can become President, and it’s about definitively rejecting the far-right ideologies that have caused so much harm.
November 5th, 2008 at 4:46 pm
amen. i’m also a bit in shock over the fact that i actually felt proud of my country for the first time in YEARS for doing the right thing. especially during my travels overseas, and in conversations with foreigners who invariably ask “did you vote for bush?” - because how i answer will determine what kind of person that they think that i am. and i am always quite happy to tell them that i didn’t. (i usually try to rein myself in from the involuntary subsequent 15-minute tirade about the ridiculousness of my home state’s - ohio - part in the last election.)
obama is what our country has needed for a very long time: a leader. and an inspiring one at that. i think that he was absolutely the best pick of the two major candidates to start us on the long path to getting our country back on its feet.
November 5th, 2008 at 8:26 pm
a good day in America, finally.
November 5th, 2008 at 10:38 pm
Great Success.
Now if only a grip of bell-ends hadn’t voted in Prop 8 here in California…
November 6th, 2008 at 9:13 am
Yeah, the Prop 8 situation is terrible. HUGE out of state money poured in to support bigotry; so sad and stupid. I’m all for ANYONE who is in a commited relationship being able to be able to have the benefits (health insurance, etc other civil rights/finacial benefits granted to straight couples), and if two people want the whole marriage deal too, more power to them, I say. Stable, long-term relationships help communities thrive.
We’re still stuck with some ridiculous/evil reps (Bachman?! arrgh!) here in MN, too.
November 6th, 2008 at 3:05 pm
Proposition 8 lost in California by a very small margin. In other states, the anti-choicers were kicked to the curb. America is swinging rational. I don’t expect Proposition 8 will survive a repeal referendum in 4 years.
November 7th, 2008 at 8:48 pm
I too hope that Prop 8 can be overturned soon. I think largely the anti-prop 8 forces got a bit lazy and didn’t realize how strong the pro forces were. That’s what I hear from friends in CA.
I’m puzzled by something else I saw and was hoping somebody could explain it to me. Given that Palin was homophobic and the GOP campaign was blatantly racist, how did McCain increase his share of the gay vote by 40%? He still got only 27% of the gay vote, but gays are the only major group to decrease their support for Obama relative to Kerry, all other groups increased it.
Here are the links:
http://www.gaypatriot.net/2008/11/07/mccain-increased-gay-vote-margin-for-gop/
http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2008/11/obama-outperforms-kerry-among-virtually.html
— Z
November 9th, 2008 at 9:30 am
I spent the last week of Oct and the first few days of Nov volunteering here at MoveOn HQ, going door-to-door, doing the GOTV thing.
I burst into tears when Florida turned blue.
My God, Heather, we did it.
I still haven’t stopped crying randomly. I’m sick– head cold– but damn. We did it. The world is a sane place again, for four years at least.
Hot damn.
November 10th, 2008 at 2:37 am
Your blog makes me so happy. I know it’s off-topic, but I just wanted to send an appreciative hug your way.
January 20th, 2009 at 11:36 am
I know this is long overdue. I’m home from work today sick, so I got to watch the inauguration and I was thinking of you. I haven’t had time to read your journal in many months.
BJ and I were in Key West election night, and it was a WONDERFUL place to be (yes, we absentee voted before we left). I’m overwhelmed with emotion and relief. Like you, I didn’t realize I’d spent the last 8 years holding my breath. We lost our house this summer due to BJ losing his job last February. I have hope for the first time in a long time. I felt hope on election night. However, like so many that fight challenge after challenge in life, I didn’t really let myself believe that it was real until today. I watched Obama take the oath. It’s real. Bush is gone!!!!!!
I miss you.